Stuffing for mattresses and method of preparing same



Oct. 8, 1929. M. K. LAMBERT ET AL ,7

s'rumus FOR uumnssns AND METHOD OF mnmnme SAME Original Filed July 17. 1922 TTORNEY Patented Dot. 8, 1929 far res

MAX K. LAMBERT AND Cl-IAELES W. KEIVER, 0F OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNORS TO STAR MATTRESS COMPANY, OF OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA, A CORPORATION OF CALIFORNIA STUFFING FOR MATTRESEES AND METHOD OF PREPilB/ING Application filed July 17, 1922, Serial Our invention relates to a stuffing or filling for mattresses, cushions and the like, and to the method of preparing the stutfing.

An object of the invention is to provide mattress stu'liing having lrapok in felted form.

Another object of the invention is to provide a kapolr stuffing that will enable the mattress to retain its original shape and cushioning qualities indefinitely.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a mattress stuffing possessing the foregoing advantages which is considerably stronger but is no greater in weight than most stuffings heretofore used.

The invention possesses other objects and features of advantage, some of which, with the foregoing, will be set forth in the following description of the preferred form of our invention which is illustrated in the drawings accompanying and forming part of the specification. It is to be understood however, that we do not limit ourselves to the showing made by the said drawings and description, as we may adopt variations of the preferred form within the scope of our invention as set forth in the claims.

Referring to said drawings Figure l is a sectional perspective view showing a pair of webs used in forming the stuffing.

Figure 2 is an enlarged fragmentary'sectional view taken through the stuffing of our invention.

Heretofore most mattresses filled with kapok or a mixture containing more or less kapok, usually after one or two yea s of usage become extremely thin at the cent r. This is due to the fact that the kapolr fibers being short. brittle and but slightly interwoven, soon break up, become reduced to powdered state and are forced toward the edges of the mattress. In accordance however with our invention the hapol: is arranged in such form and so associated with one or more fibrous substances of much greater matting capacity, that the kapok fibers are held together in the desired relation practically indefinitely.

Briefly expressed the mattress stuffing of our invention in its preferred embodiment comprises a web or felted mixture composed with No. 575,715. Renewed July 17, 1929.

principally of kapolr and a small amount of wool, placed on a web of felted cotton. A plurality of the pairs of webs are arranged in the mattress in superposed relation so that each kapok web is held between two cotton webs. The combined webs are preferably held in position by the usual tying and tufting.

A detailed description follows:

In the preparation of the stufling, we prefer to use primed japara kapok which is mixed in the proportion of about forty-eight and two-thirds (LP/W parts by weight to two and two-thirds (2%) parts by weight of wool. As hereinbefore mentioned the kapolr fibers are comparatively short and become disasseciated very readily; however by mixing the kapok with the wool, the comparatively long twisted fibers of the latter entwine themselves around the kapok fibers and thus retain them together. The use of the wool also adds to the warmth retaining qualities of the mattress.

After being thoroughly mixed the kapok and wool mixture preferably placed in f Ming machine as to be formed into a thin felting or web 3. il e have found that it i advisable to combine the felted mixture w w some ingredient which will hold the ln-ipolr fibers firmly interwoven by the wool fibers. For this purpose cotton staple in about the ame part by weight as the kapok, has proved to be very desirable, since it is light and is provided with comparatively long fibers. However it is impractical to actually mix the kapok or lzapok mixture he cotton since in the mixing operation the cotton fibers become separated from each other and thus impair the ability of the cotton to hold together. In order therefore that the cotton may be as effective as possible and act as a firm support and binding me dium for the lzapok mixture, we preferably pass the cotton also through a felting machine and lay the kapok and wool web orfelting upon the resultant cot-ton felt l. The two felt webs are preferably pressed together so that the fibers on the abutting sides of the webs become thoroughly enmeshed with each other; in this manner the webs become practically inseparable and the three ingredients are thus securely held together-to form a single lamination 5 which can be readily handled.

The webs are usually extremely thin and in order to provide for the necessary thickness of the mattress filling 6, a large number of the laminations are placed one upon another. Furthermore the webs are so arranged that a web of one kind will be held between two webs of the other, thereby causing the kapok to be always flanked on each side by a cotton support. It will thus be clear that after the laminated filling is arranged in the mattress ticking and properly tied and tufted that a most- .efiicient mattress may be had.

\Vhile the stufiing of our invention is primarily adapted for mattresses, it may be used with equal success for cushions, pillows, and similar articles by modifying if necessary the proportion and the manner of combining the ingredients.

We claim:

1. A mattress filling comprising alternate layers of felted kapok and matted cotton, each of said layers of felted kapok being composed of a relatively large proportion by weight of kapok and a relatively small proportion of wool and each by weight of said cotton layers containing substantially the same weight of cotton as there is kapok in a kapok layer.

2. A mattress filling comprising amulti plicity of alternately arranged felt-ed kapok and cotton webs having the fibers on the abutting sides of the webs mutually entangled with each other, the webs being of such thinness that the mutual penetration of said fibers is relatively deep with respect to the thickness of said webs, each of said webs of felted lrapok being composed of a relatively large proportion by weight of kapok and a relatively small proportion by Weight of wool and each of said cotton webs containing the same weight of cotton as there is kapolr in the lrapok webs.

3. A mattress filling built up of superposed laminations of material, each of said laminations comprising a web of felted kapok supported on a web of a comparatively short fibered material.

4. A method of making mattresses consisting of intimately intermingling the in dividual fibers of lrapok stock with the fibers of a longer fibered stock, causing the fibers last mentioned to entwine themselves around the fibers of the liapok stock forming the combined stocks into a layer and placing the layer upon a layer of stock having a shorter fiber than either of said stocks first mentioned. V

' 5. A method of making a mattress consisting of intimately intermingling the individual fibers of kapok stock with the fibers of a longer stock, causing the fibers of the longer stock to entwine with those of the kapok stock forming the combined fibered stocks into a layer, and placing the layer on a layer of cotton.

6. A method of making a mattress consisting of intimately intermingling the individual fibers of kapok stock with the fibers of wool stock, causing the fibers of wool stock to entwine with those of the kapol: stock passing the fibers so entwined through a felting machine to form a layer, and combining said layer with a layer of other material.

7. A mattress filling built up of superposed laminations of material, each of said laminations comprising a web of felted kapok supported on a web of a comparatively short fibered material, said webs being of such thinness that the mutual penetration of their fibers at abutting surfaces of the webs is relatively deep with respect tothe thickness of said webs.

In testimony whereof, we have hereunto set our hands at Oakland, California, this 29th day of June, 1922.

M. K. LAMBERT. CHARLES W. KEIVER. 

